Free Stuff!

According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Sunday, what is predicted to be the last weekend before the completion of the most egregious conservative flip-flop of all time (they were for the mandate before they were against it):

• 56% of those polled are against the healthcare overhaul; 44% favor it.

The individual provisions, however, continue to draw solid support:

• 82 % of survey respondents favoring banning insurance companies from denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.
• 61% are in favor of allowing children to stay on their parents’ insurance until age 26.
• 72 % back requiring companies with more than 50 employees to provide insurance for their employees.

The big exception is the “individual mandate,” which requires most U.S. residents to own health insurance:

• 61% of Americans are against the mandate; 39 % favor it.

In summary, Americans are overwhelmingly in favor of the benefits provided by the Affordable Care Act.  They are equally overwhelmingly against paying for it.  That is the quintessential American position, isn’t it?  It also explains the attitude that conservatives argue has destroyed our federal budget.  We love free stuff.

The wait for the judges’ decision is almost over.  Then the battle begins to undo the "other" mandate - the mandate that health care providers offer service regardless of a person's ability to pay.  Once doctors can deny service to freeloaders, then costs will come down.


Ain't that America.